Last week on FYFA (and in my life):
Nothing super new to report this week. I had that second deep cleaning at the dentist (this time I listened to Shadow and Bone). I also binge-watched the last couple of seasons of The Fosters, which is total guilty-pleasure TV. It has to be the most melodramatic show on the planet and I regularly want to scream at the characters for their stupidity—but I watch it anyway. 🙂 And once I caught up on that one, I started watching The 100 because I’m a season behind on that too.
Yesterday, my family and I went to an RV show. My husband loves to watch YouTube channels where the people are full-time RVers and we even seriously considered doing it ourselves last year. It’s kind of a pipe dream at this point, but we still like to imagine it! We love to travel, and the idea of traveling all around the US constantly is pretty darn appealing to us. If only we didn’t have to squash all five of us into an RV full time—I’m pretty sure we’d kill each other
Here’s what you may have missed on the blog last week:
- #famous by Jilly Gagnon – Spotlight & giveaway – Last chance to enter to win a hardcover copy of the book!
- Jonah by Nikki Kelly – Review – I know I said this would have a giveaway with it, but I don’t know what happened with this tour. I never heard back from the person who runs the tour company, so I just ended up posting my review.
- Review of the eStories Platform & Books 1&2 of the Kingfountain Series by Jeff Wheeler
- Am I the Only One Without an OTP? Let’s Discuss!
Next week on FYFA:
- Batgirl at Super Hero High by Lisa Yee – Review
- Some bite-sized reviews of books I’m behind on reviewing.
- Let’s Discuss: Something bookish! 🙂
Book Blogger Birthdays and Blogoversaries:
Lots of birthdays and blogoversaries this week! (Must be trying to make up for last week.) Make sure you check out the calendar to see what you might have just missed or what’s coming up. (If you want to be added to the calendar, you can always fill out the birthday/blogoversary form.)
- February 21st – Cilla @ Paved With Books‘ Birthday
- February 21st – My Expanding Bookshelf‘s Blogoversary
- February 22nd – Charlie @ Girl of 1000 Wonders‘ Birthday
- February 23rd – SJ Bouquet @ A Tree Grows in Bookland‘s Birthday
- February 24th – Book Briefs‘ Blogoversary
- February 24th – Jessica @ jessicasblog45‘s Birthday
- February 24th – Rachel @ Confessions of a Book Geek‘s Birthday
Physical Books For Review:
Thanks so much to Farrar, Straus and Giroux for Sad Perfect and to Simon & Schuster for The Education of Margot Sanchez!
From NetGalley/Edelweiss/the Author:
I got several books for review over the past two weeks. Yikes!! But these all looked so good, I couldn’t resist. First off, there’s the next book and a novella in S.J. Pajonas’s Miso Cozy Mysteries Series. I’m not usually a mystery reader, but I love Pajonas’s books and all of the Japanese culture I get to soak up when I read them! Next comes The Dead Inside, which is an autobiographical book from Sourcebooks Fire that sounds way too fascinating to pass up. Letters to the Lost from Bloomsbury is by Brigid Kemmerer, another author I can’t miss. I haven’t yet read Claudia Gray or but I know everyone raves about them, so I picked up Defy the Stars (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers) and The Inexplicable Logic of My Life (Clarion). And then there’s Ignite, which I’m reviewing for Inkitt.
Thanks to all these publishers and authors for the chance to read (lots of) great books!
Great Discussions/Goings On Around the Blogosphere:
Here are a few posts I loved this week:
- Sam @ Sharing Inspired Kreations talks about Commenting on Old Blog Posts
- Susie @ Girl with Her Head in a Book discusses the trouble with the word “girl”
- Puput @ Sparkling Letters gives us her perspective in My Stance as A Diverse Book Blogger & Introducing New Feature : The Diversity Corner
Pre-Order Deals:
- Pre-order DONE DIRT CHEAP by Sarah Nicole Lemon and get a signed bookplate with a quote from the book. (ends 3/7)
- Pre-order THE CROWN’S FATE by Evelyn Skye, and you can get a limited edition bookmark and a set of 3 stickers–Team Vika, Team Nikolai, and Team Pasha! Plus, there’s an additional giveaway if you order from Kepler’s. (ends 5/15)
- Pre-order THE LOST STAFF OF WONDERS by Raymond Arroyo and receive a signed bookplate for your book and a limited edition bookmark. (ends 3/6)
- Pre-order TRICKED by Jen Calonita and receive a Fairy Tale Reform School digital exclusive featuring Rapunzel! (ends 3/6)
- Pre-order THE BONE WITCH by Rin Chupeco and receive a signed bookmark and The Bone Witch sticker. You will also be entered to win a GRAND PRIZE Bone Witch themed crate. (ends 3/6)
- Pre-order THE SHIP BEYOND TIME by Heidi Heilig from an indie bookstore and get a gorgeous cloisonne pin of the black ship Temptation while supplies last! (ends 2/28)
- Pre-order THE SONG RISING by Samantha Shannon and receive exclusive badges and temporary tattoos to #JoinTheRevolution. (ends 3/6)
- Pre-order A CONJURING OF LIGHT by V.E. Schwab for a chance to receive a book hugger signed by V. E. Schwab. (ends 2/28)
Other Current Giveaways on FYFA:
(Besides the ones listed with this week’s posts)
- So You Say It’s Your Birthday? It’s My Birthday (and Blogoversary) Too! – Come enter the giveaway!
- January Wrap-Up Round-Up Giveaway – Anyone can enter, so head over to win a book from my giveaway/trade list!
- February Discussion Challenge Link-Up & Giveaway – Link up your February discussions and enter to win!
Even More Awesome Giveaways on Other Sites:
- It’s Crushing Cinders’ blogoversary and Sue is celebrating by giving away a book of your choice (INT)!
- And another blogoversary over at Girl in the Pages! Head over there to win a book Cristina has reviewed (INT)!
- Head over to Verbosity Reviews for the Island of Exiles blog tour and for a chance to win a $30 Gift Card to the eBook Retailer of your Choice that Offers Gift Cards (Amazon, B&N, or iBooks)
- Lots of blogs participating in the February New Release Giveaway Hop!
- And also the Romance is in the Air Giveaway Hop!
- Head over to Starcrossed Book Blog for a chance to win a copy of Frostblood & branded nail polish duo in shades of fire and frost
- Head over to Pure Imagination for a chance to win a February New Release of your choice.
- Head over to It Starts at Midnight for a chance to win an ARC of The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye
- Jessica @ a GREAT read is celebrating eight years of blogging with a big giveaway!
- XPresso Book Tours is giving away a $50 gift card and more in honor of the new year!
- The Bookkeeper’s Secrets is doing a year-long giveaway!
Lots of good stuff! Have any giveaways or great discussions happening on your site right now? Feel free to share them in the comments!
Oh, man. I really would like to have a copy of the newest Alire! I guess I’ll have to wait till it comes out in March.
Have a great week, Nicole!
I’m excited to read it because everyone raves about his first book.
Awesome haul of books. You had a busy week this week.
Grace @ Books of Love
Yes, very busy—as usual!
You have a very nice haul this week!
I’m sometimes tempted by the “live in an RV” idea myself… until I remember how many books I have. And how much yarn. I could probably manage books with just my Kindle, but there’s no virtual substitute for yarn for knitting or fiber for spinning, let alone the needles and spindles required.
My husband and I actually joked about the fact that we’d have to get a toy hauler RV for all my books and how we’d go over all the weight limits. 🙂
The RV thing sounds like so much fun but I am not sure it would be for me. My parents have talked about doing a trip like that though. Nice haul. I got the The Inexplicable Logic of My Life too and i am pumped. Hope you enjoy them all and have a great week!
Inexplicable is in that weird format, so we have to read it on our computers, right? Do you know any way around that?
I downloaded the Aldiko app on my phone and I could load and read on there. How that works for you too!
Thanks for the advice! I’ll try it out!
I’m binging The Fosters right now. I caught up with Pretty Little Liars and now I’m catching up on The Fosters. It is an interesting show. I don’t know if I could RV around the country. I would love to be able to see more of the world, but I don’t think I would do well with such small spaces.
The Fosters is one of those shows that I love to hate … but I can’t keep myself away once I start watching it. The characters’ decisions make me CRAZY, and seriously, how many crazy things can happen to one family? But, yeah, I still kind of love it.
Ooh nice new reads!! Very curious about Defy the Stars! Can’t wait to see what you think about it! Hope you enjoy the new reads and have a great week!
Here’s my STS
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower 🙂
I’m curious about it too. I never managed to read Gray’s other books, but I know everyone raves about her.
Yeah, it could get crowded traveling with that many. LOL You sure did get some good books. Sad Perfect is on my wish list and some of these others will probably find their way there too.
I obviously had a hard time resisting bookish temptation this week!
LOL about RV’ing- I’ve thought a few times that it sounds appealing too. And those shows are fun. I kinda envy those who have the wherewithal or gumption to do that. 🙂 And I don’t even talk about The 100 or I’ll get all fanboyish lol.
Defy The Stars and Daydreamer detective look great.
I have to catch up on The 100 so that I can read Shannon’s blog! LOL!
It’s interesting to hear about people that live full time in RVs or even those tiny homes, but I definitely couldn’t handle that life! haha Maybe you’ll get a shot to do it when your kids are older!
-Lauren
I would love to live in a tiny house or an RV if I didn’t have kids. Or maybe a tiny house with an attached tiny house library?
Sounds like you had a great week! 😀 I also received The Inexplicable Logic of My Life from Netgalley and I really loved it. Plot wise there’s not much going on but it’s suuuuch a beautiful and heartwarming book <3 & thank you for linking back to my post!
You read it quick! I’m eager to get to that one.
I’m still waiting on my copy of Sad Perfect, and I have written on my calendar that I was supposed to do a review of it on Thursday. Not sure if that was a scheduled tour, or just when I planned it. Since I haven’t received my copy yet, not sure I’ll get to it in time for that. Will have to see. I love RV shows, we used to have pop-up campers when I was growing up. I still like to go with my family even though I’m an adult. It’s fun to look at the really big ones that I know I’ll never actually afford or know anyone who affords. I guess they could help me for research if I ever write a rock star romance about a tour bus maybe. Hope you have a great week! Thanks for visiting my Sunday Post earlier!
There was a delay with the books, I guess, so they’re arriving later than planned. I signed up for the tour, but I don’t have a date written in my calendar, so I need to find out when I’m supposed to review it!
I was dragged on enough road trips all around the US as a kid, I’ll pass on the RV dream lol. Love the covers for Defy the Stars and Ignite!
My kids weren’t too excited about the idea either. They actually don’t mind road trips, but the idea of leaving their friends and our house makes my daughter miserable and my 14-year-old hates the idea of living in such a small space (which I can understand—we’d probably drive each other crazy!).
YES…the idea of traveling appeals to me, but the thought of living in such a tiny space with nowhere to be alone..nope. I will look up the Fosters. Have a wonderful week.
I’d be okay with the small space if it were just me and my husband, but it would be really tough with our family of five!
I love camping, but I don’t think I could survive in an RV with my family for very long. We all need a lot of space to keep from killing each other. I hope you enjoy your new books! I’m looking forward to hearing what you think about The Inexplicable Logic of My Life. I really want to read that one.
Yes, that’s one of the major reasons we’re not actually doing it. I’m not sure all of us would survive the experience!
Maybe once the kids are in college or off on their own, you and your hubby can travel the countryside in your RV. 🙂 Encourage the kids to go to college away from home and you can take the RV to see them!!
We’ve actually talked about this. The youngest has special needs and may never be completely self-sufficient, but we could probably manage with the three of us. 🙂
OH, I’ve been to that one before in Chicago, it’s SO much fun! My bestie back in Chicago and my Uncle were there on Saturday, and then they also went to the carshow. Wish I could have been there too, lucky!
I requested and received Letters to the Lost also. Here’s hoping we both love!
It was a lot of fun. I’m really glad we went! Kemmerer is a favorite author of mine, so I’m excited to read her new book!
I would lose my mind if I had to live in an RV. I love to travel but 5-star hotels is more my speed. Lol. Yay! I’m glad you have your copy of the new Daydreamer book and that you’re looking forward to reading it. It’s nice that some people who aren’t mystery reader have given this series a chance. I’m so grateful. <3
I wish we did 5-star hotels, but we’re just way too cheap for that. LOL! Actually, a lot of the time when we go somewhere we just rent a house. That’s worked really well for us in the past—we get a really nice place for a great price, especially if it’s an extended stay.